Only Time
by ShaeLynn
Summary: When Harry Potter returned to Hogwarts for his sixth year he was different. It was subtle changes, nothing that would stand out at first, but he was different. Sometimes one just can't tell what's happening, no matter how bad things get. Contains illness and non-graphic mentions of rape.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Only Time

Disclaimer: I do not own, wish I did, but I don't. Anything recognizable including all characters, places, and images are under trademark through JKR and the companies that publish the books and make the movies. I only own my plot line.

**Author: ShaeLynn Teelle **

**Warning: Possible Death Fic; mention of Abuse; disregards HBP and DH**

**This story will have multiple chapters. The story can be read as two halves, the first half of which will be posted and can be taken as a story alone. The second half will be posted within an unknown time frame.  
**

**If someone wants to archive, please ask first. You won't be turned down, but I would like to know where it's going. Thank you.**

**Polite constructive criticism is welcome; FLAMES WILL BE FED TO THE DRAGON IN MY BED.**

Chapter 1

When Harry Potter returned to Hogwarts for his sixth year he was different. It was subtle changes, nothing that would stand out at first, but he was different. There was a solemness which surrounded him and his temper was more subdued than before. It was just as easy to anger him as it had always been, but he didn't yell or lose control of his magic, nor did he fling insults or comebacks at the ones that angered him.

His friends and many of the teachers simply believed that it was his reaction to what had happened in the Department of Mysteries at the end of fifth year. The Order members and those of the D.A. that had been there, thought he might have dealt with his grief and was trying to pick up where he left off with his life. He had been quieter all summer long, most of which he spent with the Weasleys.

Harry had only been at the Dursleys for a few weeks; weeks in which he did quietly grieve for Sirius. But a few weeks was all it took for Harry to learn something that forever would change his life. The day before the Order escorted him to Grimmauld Place his aunt left Vernon.

It would seem that for years Vernon had been sleeping around behind Petunia's back and had acquired a virus nearly three and a half years prior. Luckily for Petunia the two had not been intimate since before Dudley had gone to Smeltings. But the virus Vernon had admitted he had when he was overly drunk one night was what impacted Harry's life enough that it overshadowed Sirius' death. It overshadowed the Prophecy, and for a few days, it completely took Harry's mind off of Voldemort.

That led him to his sixth year. That led him to being in the library on his weekends, researching things that had nothing to do with Hogwart's curriculum. Hermione questioned him and questioned him about what he was doing, concerned when his marks never improved. Harry told her it was Voldemort related and Hermione stopped asking, though she did begin to research curses and spells that she thought might help Harry.

It wasn't until after the winter holidays were over that anyone learned what was really going on. Since the second month of school Harry had been getting paler and weaker, though he hid the weakness well from everyone. When it grew colder he had taken to wearing an extra jumper whenever he could, claiming that he was just colder that year.

He was the only Gryffindor to stay for the holidays and Harry spent it in the library or huddled in front of the Gryffindor fireplace, wrapped in blankets and making lists of things that needed to be taken care of. He attended the meals in the Great Hall, but found that he could barely keep what little he ate down. The first day of classes after the holidays revealed that Harry had been hiding more than anyone would have ever guessed.

It was afternoon. It was, of course, in advanced double potions with the Slytherins. Harry had managed to squeeze out an O on his OWLs and hadn't done very horribly that year. He was on his way to the front of the room where the ingredients had been displayed. He was at the end of the line, Hermione was behind him, and there was no one else near him to cause a problem. Then, he stumbled and collapsed.

When Severus first reached his side at Hermione's cry, he thought it was simply another bid for attention from the Boy-Who-Lived. Until he turned Harry onto his back to find that he had been using advanced glamorie spells, much more advanced than was taught at Hogwarts. The longer Harry laid on the floor unconscious, the more the glamories seemed to melt from his very skin.

His face was ashen, the cheeks gaunt, and the hollow of his eyes were sunken and bruised from exhaustion. Severus checked for a pulse in Harry's wrist, seeing that his fingernails were yellow and cracked. The pulse was there, but weaker than it should have been and would flutter every so often. The next thing Severus did was leave Hermione in charge of the class as he picked the severely underweight body up and took him to the infirmary

Poppy performed every diagnostic spell she knew of on Harry, including a rare one that gave her the answer she needed. Severus was sent for Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall as the medi-witch began performing strengthening and healing spells on Harry. By the time the three Professors had returned she had done every spell that could help Harry, only needing to wait for him to wake before giving him several potions. As they waited Poppy explained to the others what she had found.

"Mr. Potter is carrying an advanced attacking stage of Aldena's Heartache. He has the Muggle version of the virus. I'm not nearly as familiar with this strain in such a late stage, though both the Muggle version and Aldena's Heartache have the same reaction," Poppy explained in a grave voice.

"How advanced, Poppy?" Albus asked in genuine concern, though his eyes held disappointment as he looked at Harry.

"A month, maybe two, and it would have been too advanced for medi-magic to help him. As it is, we've caught it soon enough to stop the progression. It will be up to his innate magic how much he'll recover from this."

The three Professors stood watching the boy in silence for some time as Poppy brought over several potion bottles for when Harry awoke. One was stone-faced as he looked on the son of one man he hated. Another's eyes were disappointed as she scowled at the student. The third looked weary and defeated until Severus spoke.

"We need to know how he contracted the Muggle version of Aldena's Heartache. We will have to find out how many other students could be infected and how long he's had this virus."

"Albus, if he's had it long enough for it to have advanced so far, half the school could be infected. I know the teachers are tested every year, but the students aren't. We watch the students activities, Albus, but we aren't that strict anymore," McGonagall spoke quietly in horror at the repercussions of the virus running rampant in the school.

"Calm yourself, Minerva. Poppy said this was the Muggle strain. They have other means of infecting others around them than simply enjoying another's company. We will have to wait for Mr. Potter to awaken."

"What will his punishment be, Headmaster? It is customary for a student to be expelled when he has broken the rules in such—"

"Innocent until proven guilty, Severus. Innocent until proven guilty. We yet have no proof that Mr. Potter has done anything wrong."

"Of course he has done something wrong. How else could he have gotten—"

"I didn't do anything," a weak voice spoke from the bed, pulling the Professors' attention there.

Poppy hurried over from the other side of the infirmary and began pouring the waiting potions down Harry's throat. A few minutes later she was finished and Harry lay back against the pillows weakly.

"Mr. Potter, do you know what is wrong with you?"

Harry was startled at the name the Headmaster used and finally really looked at the three of them. Seeing the disappointment in Albus' and McGonagall's eyes, Harry closed his, an unnoticed tear slipping out. He nodded briefly.

"How did you get this, Potter?" Severus demanded, his patience at an end.

Harry shook his head, unwilling to open his eyes.

"Is there a chance others have gotten this from you, Mr. Potter?" McGonagall asked, but her voice was as strict as Snape's.

"No, Professor. There should be no one else that has this. At least not from me."

"You will remain in the infirmary, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore spoke, his voice weary. "The other Professors and I will determine what should happen next. Until then you are allowed no visitors and you will speak with no one except Madam Pomfrey or myself. Rest for now."

With that the three Professors left the infirmary and Madam Pomfrey returned to her office, leaving Harry alone with his thoughts. Thoughts that kept going 'round and 'round in his head and his hands clenched within the blankets covering him.

He couldn't tell them. He couldn't let them know what his uncle had done to him. He didn't want to see the pity in their eyes and the eyes of the rest of the Wizarding World as no such revelation could be kept secret if it concerned him. Harry closed his eyes, squeezing them in an attempt to keep the tears pricking his eyes at bay. He turned away from the infirmary door, the blanket pulled up high enough to shield his face from the light. It didn't take long for him to lose the battle against the tears and he buried his face within his pillow to hide any sounds.

Harry didn't remember falling asleep when he woke hours later, but it was dark inside the infirmary. The only light was from the waning moon as it shone in through the windows and the silence was deafening. He still lay curled upon his side and braced himself for the pain he had been feeling for weeks when he rolled onto his back. The pain was still there, but it was nowhere near what it had been. He stared at the ceiling in surprise and didn't hear the whispering footsteps as they approached his corner of the infirmary.

"Harry?"

His eyes followed the figure as it moved closer to the bed. "What are you doing here? If they see you—"

"I know. They're only watching the ones they know will come. The spell's not set to keep me out."

Harry nodded and relaxed slightly into the pillows. The other form sat on the edge of his bed, not saying anything in the comfortable silence for long moments.

"What happened, Harry?"

"I've been sick with something and I never told anyone about it. The Professors are discussing what will happen. I don't think I'm going to be here for much longer."

"But the Dark Lord," the figure began, his voice aghast. "He's still out there. He'll find you. It won't even be a challenge. Where will they send you?"

"I don't know. Perhaps back to my relatives."

"The Muggles? What kind of protection can they offer you?" the other scoffed.

Harry's voice was weary when he answered and again he felt the tears trying to escape. "None. There's no protection there now. I'm going to be on my own if I go back."

"You know how to reach me if you need to talk, Harry. I hope you get better, soon. I don't want to lose anymore friends."

"Are we friends?"

"Yes. Since the day you saved us."

It wasn't until the next evening, shortly before sundown, that the Headmaster returned to the infirmary. There was no twinkle in his eyes and his expression was slightly grim. Madam Pomfrey had been over to check on him once, but beyond her there had been no visitors since the previous night. Dumbledore stood at the end of the bed, watching Harry for a moment before he spoke.

"Mr. Potter, the staff and I have reached a majority decision on your future at Hogwarts. However, I can give you one final chance to tell us what we need to know. How did you obtain Aldena's Heartache?"

Harry looked down at his clasped hands and shook his head. He heard the Headmaster's resigned and disappointed sigh, but he refused to look up or answer the question.

"Then, we have no choice, Mr. Potter. For the safety of all those in this school, you will return to your relations—" Harry's head snapped up, a protest on his lips even though he had been expecting the announcement. "—and your wand will remain within my custody until you have reached your seventeenth birthday. Then, you will receive it back as you will no longer be underage."

"What about Voldemort, sir?" Harry asked quietly, dreading the answer.

"For now we can only wait and hope for the best. The Order will be in contact with you later on. It will not be announced what has happened and there will be no watchers to draw attention to where you will be. I will have your trunk brought down in the morning with all your possessions disincluding your wand. I'm sorry, Mr. Potter. Get some sleep. You will be leaving before six a.m."

With that the Headmaster left the infirmary. That night Harry again cried himself to sleep. But this time there was no comfort offered by a hidden friend or any soul.

The next morning Madam Pomfrey woke Harry at five a.m. She performed one last check on him and gave him a final potion before she explained his state of health. She was able to stop the virus from progressing further and it would be up to him how quickly and how much he recovered.

"Rest, eat healthy foods, exercise lightly, and you should begin to improve. Let your relatives know about the situation. I'm sure they'll be willing to help you regain your health."

"Yes, Madam Pomfrey," Harry answered quietly, nearly a whisper, unable to meet the medi-witch's eyes.

"One more thing, Mr. Potter. Because of how advanced your case was, if you should come into contact with the same source as last time and contract Aldena's Heartache again, it will take up where the last case ended. Depending on how much you've healed prior to that will lengthen how long you will have before nothing can be done for you. The point you are at now, you would barely have a month before I would no longer be able to help you. I urge you to cease whatever activity you were doing that allowed you to contract Aldena's Heartache."

Harry could only nod. He didn't trust his voice and if anyone had thought to look into his eyes at that moment they would have only seen despair.

Professor Dumbledore escorted Harry to Privet Drive himself. Harry was pulling his trunk behind him and, though a light-weight charm had been cast on it, it was taking all of Harry's effort to not let it go. They stopped on the sidewalk in front of number four and Dumbledore turned to Harry, disappointment and resignation in his eyes.

"I am truly sorry about this, Mr. Potter, but for the good of the school, I have no choice. The Order will try to contact you once a month. Do not send out Hedwig, it would be extremely dangerous for her."

Then, without waiting for a reply, the Headmaster turned and walked away.

Harry was left in front of a house that he had hoped he would never have to see again. He thought about continuing past the house. He could leave and no one would be the wiser until the Order sent an owl and received no reply. Then, he remembered that he had no wand. He would be just as defenseless away from Privet Drive as if he stayed, but at least if he stayed here, someone would find him when he was attacked. Out there, no one would find his body when he died.

He now wished that he had forsaken the little pride he had and just told them what had happened, just told them what his uncle had been doing to him, but it was too late. Dumbledore was gone already and he would not have the chance to send out Hedwig before he was noticed. Harry did not even know if his pleas would be considered any longer now that he had wasted every chance they gave him.

With a heavy heart and even heavier footsteps, he walked up to the front door and rang the bell, praying no one was home. There was no one else around to see the tears that were shed as he waited and heard the heavy footfalls from inside the walls. And there was no one to see the lust in an ill Vernon's gaze as he opened the door to see his nephew with trunk in tow.

Reviews are appreciated.


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Only Time

Disclaimer: I do not own, wish I did, but I don't. Anything recognizable including all characters, places, and images are under trademark through JKR and the companies that publish the books and make the movies. I only own my plot line.

**Author: ShaeLynn Teelle **

**Warning: Possible Death Fic; mention of Abuse; disregards HBP and DH**

**If someone wants to archive, please ask first. You won't be turned down, but I would like to know where it's going. Thank you.**

**Polite constructive criticism is welcome; FLAMES WILL BE FED TO THE DRAGON IN MY BED.**

Chapter 2

There was no direct contact with Harry Potter for five months after he had been left at the Dursley's. For some, it was a horrible game of waiting and for others, his absence was barely noticed after the first week. The Order sent an owl every second week of the month and tracked where it went. This way Dumbledore ensured that Harry was still where he had been placed. Few in the Order knew why Harry had been withdrawn from the school, but none went against Dumbledore's judgment.

Then, a week before school let out for the summer, a white snowy owl was seen at breakfast carrying a letter. It was addressed to the Headmaster in a slightly shaky hand. Dumbledore had Severus, Minerva, and Madam Pomfrey accompany him to his office where he read the summons aloud. Severus' classes were canceled for the day and the Astronomy Professor was announced as the temporary medi-witch as she had studied to be one before deciding on teaching. Minerva knew she couldn't leave as well, but requested that Dumbledore notify her of what was happening as soon as it was convenient.

Madam Pomfrey clutched an old-fashioned doctor's bag filled with potions vials in her hand as the three apparated under an invisibility spell as close as they could to number four Privet Drive. The front door was unlocked and no one greeted them as they entered the building. The medi-witch and Dumbledore immediately climbed the stairs to the master bedroom as the note had asked them to. There they found exactly what the note had said they would. Vernon Dursley lay on his stomach in the middle of the bed, completely naked and quite dead.

Madam Pomfrey immediately began casting spells to determine what had caused the obese man's death. When she was finished she was paler than Dumbledore had ever seen her. He waited patiently for five minutes, but Madam Pomfrey made no move to speak.

"Poppy? What happened to him?"

"He died in… He seems to have been in the process of sexually relieving himself when he had a heart attack. He had numerous other illnesses running through him at the time and I am surprised he had enough strength to get as far as he did. Also, the cause for the amount of illnesses in his body at the time of his death was the Muggle form of… Aldena's Heartache. An extremely advanced attacking stage to be precise. Far too advanced for it to have come from contact with Mr. Potter, but…" she stopped, closing her eyes.

"But?" Dumbledore prompted.

"Unless he was using drugs and forcing Mr. Potter to use the same needles… I think we may have found the source of Mr. Potter's virus. And if this was the original source, I fear Mr. Potter will be beyond our help now. I am terribly sorry that I let him be sent back here."

"Merlin, what have we done?"

Meanwhile on the first floor, Professor Snape had been investigating the Muggle house. He had noted that the sitting room was devoid of all but a few trinkets and some photographs that had broken frames. Snape continued on into the dining room where he found the other occupant of the house. Harry sat stiffly at the dining room table with a bowl of watered down broth in front of him. His trousers were baggy and nearly falling off him even as he sat. The extra large T-shirt he wore was so threadbare that it did nothing to conceal how horribly thin and malnourished he was. Harry didn't acknowledge him even when Snape strode up to his side and glared down at him.

"You seem very unconcerned that you claim your uncle is dead above us and that you look near starvation. Is there a reason for this and the rest of your relatives being absent?" Snape sneered down at the Gryffindor, but Harry neither flinched nor grew angry. Neither of them noticed when Professor Dumbledore and Madam Pomfrey entered the room.

"My aunt left with my cousin last summer, Snape. Neither of them have set foot in this house since then. There was no blood-protection left here when I returned after the New Year," Harry answered softly and calmly as he continued to slowly eat the broth in the bowl before him.

"And why in Merlin's name would she have done that and why did you not inform the Headmaster before you were left here?"

"Would it have mattered? I wasn't wanted at the school and it was made very clear to me that the illness I had made me unwelcome anywhere else in the Wizarding World."

"I'm sorry, Harry," Dumbledore said quietly from behind them, causing both to turn and look at him. "I jumped to the wrong conclusions when I was told what illness you had. I wish you had shared what was happening here and we would have—"

"Stop," Harry interrupted coldly, glaring at the Headmaster. "I don't want your pity. Why do you think I didn't tell? I didn't want to see the pity in every adults' eyes when they looked at me."

"No one would have known but those that needed to. Your uncle would have been placed on trial and—"

Again Harry interrupted, this time standing, though it was obvious that he was on shaky legs. "And the entire Wizarding World would have known by the very next edition of the Daily Prophet. It's nearly impossible to keep a secret at Hogwarts. It's even worse at the Ministry and you know that. How much do you think the people would be inspired by the Boy-Who-Lived if they knew that I can't even defend myself from my own Muggle uncle?"

"I would not have let that happen, Harry."

"Stop calling me that! You become disappointed and begin calling me 'Mr. Potter' until you suddenly discover that I didn't do anything wrong and now I'm 'Harry' again. Make up your mind, old man. I didn't ask you to come here so you'd be kind to me again now that it's convenient. I only told you he was dead so you could decide if there was anywhere else you wanted to hide me before the Muggle authorities are called and I'm sent to hospital under the care of child services."

"Yes, of course there is somewhere else you can stay if you wish to return to the Wizarding World. It is your choice now."

"So now it's my choice. Some choice. Die in a Muggle hospital surrounded by unfamiliar faces or die in the Wizarding World where at least someone will care that I'm there. Why wasn't I allowed that choice before I was dying again!"

"What on earth are you talking about? Madam Pomfrey stopped Aldena's Heartache before you were returned here so you are not going to die unless you off yourself," Snape sneered and Harry glared at him.

"Actually, Snape, if you had paid any attention to the conversation instead of your hatred for me, you would realize that yes, I am going to die," Harry growled at the man before turning back to Madam Pomfrey. "What was it you said before I was released from the infirmary? If I came into contact with the same source that I originally got Aldena's Heartache from, that you gave me a month before I regressed to the point I was at before and was beyond magickal help? I think I managed to stay pretty healthy these last five months despite the fact my uncle so kindly raped me again the moment he had the front door closed the day I was dropped off!"

"What?" Snape shouted, startling Harry, but Snape's attention was on Dumbledore completely. "Albus, you swore you were checking. You promised me no one else would ever leave through the doors of Hogwarts to return to a home like that. You promised! You promised me never again, Albus!"

"I am sorry, Severus. I checked every student when they came to Hogwarts and those that showed signs in later years."

"Signs! Albus, did I ever once show a sign of what happened to me? There is no sign for this, Albus. A child that acts perfectly normal can still be returning to a house where this happens. You promised, Albus, that you would never allow another child to return to physical or sexual abuse like I did. You promised." Snape's speech had started as nearly a shout, but ended in barely a whisper as his shoulders sagged forward in defeat for the first time since Harry had ever met him.

"I am sorry, Severus. I have failed you again and now I have failed Harry as well."

"He'll be returning to my home this summer. He will be looked after there. I will not negotiate on this, Headmaster. When I return next fall I expect to be allowed to check every student that walks through those doors and at least every other year after that. There is nothing that allows such treatment of a child, nothing."

"What's going on?" Harry asked weakly, drawing everyone's attention back to him as he stood there trembling.

Madam Pomfrey moved to speak, but Snape's upraised hand halted her words. "My father and grandfather were Muggles. They did not approve of magic and when my mother died they began to abuse me to stop my magic from developing. When I went to Hogwarts they realized they couldn't stop my magic and turned to other forms of abuse. My father gave me Aldena's Heartache in Muggle form when I was sixteen. As soon as I knew he had the virus I went to see Madam Pomfrey, hoping there was something she could do. She stopped it and I was given adult status so I never had to return there. It cannot do any damage to me, but I can still pass it to anyone else. I apologize for how I have treated you in the last six years and please, don't mistake me strange compassion for pity. I will always be as I have been, but I do understand what you are going through to an extent."

Harry nodded, things falling into place in his mind about the man, "Thank you, Professor. I'm sorry for what happened to you. There aren't any other Muggles that know I'm here. We can take my things and leave. The Muggle police will show up in a few days and believe he died alone. My aunt had filed for divorce shortly before I returned here. I'll get my trunk."

Harry went to walk from the room, but only managed a step before he lost consciousness and fell to the ground. Immediately Snape picked Harry up carefully from the floor and held him close. Dumbledore told him and Madam Pomfrey to take Harry to the infirmary and do what they could for him. Dumbledore retrieved all of Harry's possessions, knowing that he had told Hedwig to remain at Hogwarts for the owl's protection. He entered the infirmary with Harry's trunk floating along behind him just as Madam Pomfrey and Professor Snape were finishing getting Harry under the blankets after they had done all they could to help.

"How long do you think, Poppy?" he asked wearily.

"I don't know. If we had gotten to him barely two months ago, we would have been able to still stop Aldena's Heartache. I don't know how he lasted for three months before his body allowed it to progress that far. Right now we've managed to stop the current damage and heal everything except that. No matter how much he heals, Aldena's Heartache will slowly continue to kill him. There is nothing more we can do but keep him comfortable and stress free and heal things as they show."

"As long as Voldemort does not learn of this, the stress should remain low enough not to worsen his state."

"It'd ruin the surprise if Voldemort knew," Harry nearly whispered from the infirmary bed under a mound of blankets.

"What do you mean, Harry? What surprise?" Albus asked, coming closer to the bed and placing Harry's trunk at the end of it.

"Thank you for gathering my things, Headmaster. Voldemort was able to learn where I was since the blood-protection was no longer useful. For some reason he found it humorous that I had no protection and with no wand he felt it would be too easy to kill me. He tried to break me instead when he learned what my uncle did to me. He spent an evening raping me and doing… other things. I expect that with his weakened body he'll have about a year before he begins to show signs. He'll never admit to weakness and he can't exactly go in and get regular medical treatments. By the time he tells anyone of being ill, he should almost be too far along like I was. Even if someone manages to help him then, he'll be so weak that anyone could kill him. Who would ever think that 'the power the Dark Lord knows not' would be a Muggle virus."

"The Dark Lord always did have an attraction to young males. Especially when he marked them. My sympathies, Potter. I know what you went through," Severus whispered, his eyes meeting Harry's firmly.

"But… wouldn't Voldemort have already had Aldena's Heartache before I was born?" Harry asked, ignoring the other adults in the room.

"Yes, but it can take years before it reaches the attacking stage or it can reach that point within months. He'd had no symptoms before you had sent his curse back at him. Now, he has a new body and is free of the virus," Severus answered, pulling a chair up to the side of the bed and sitting down.

"So, he might have contracted it again when he got his new body," Harry's words were quiet and more to himself than the Professor next to him, but Snape heard it.

"What are you saying, Potter?"

"He used my blood in order to get his new body."

Severus swallowed heavily before he asked his next question, "How long was your uncle doing this to you?"

"Since the summer after third year. The threat of Sirius only worked for a short time. Vernon said last summer that he had gotten the virus over three years ago. He knew that he had it when… when he used me."

"Why did you never say anything to anyone?"

"I didn't think anyone would have believed me. I tried to tell someone after it started, but I was dismissed as exaggerating. There was no one I could think of that would believe me after that and I didn't want any pity and there's no quick solution to some things like that. I would have found it already if there was," Harry answered bitterly, looking away from Severus.

"I'm sorry, Potter. I'm sorry you didn't think that you could come to me about this. I'm sorry that I didn't pay more attention to those outside of my house," Severus said quietly.

"I did think about saying something to you, but I didn't think you'd believe a Potter. I thought your response would be like the last one or you'd call me an outright liar," Harry admitted.

Severus sighed and lowered his eyes before meeting Harry's again, "I may have been more skeptical than if it were a Slytherin or Ravenclaw, but I would never have dismissed what you had to say. My actions towards you in the past have caused that and I am ashamed of how I've treated anyone not of Slytherin house."

"Knowing that you would have listened, Professor, is enough for me. I couldn't tell earlier this year because I didn't want to face what he had done. When I was left in front of that house, I wished I'd had a time-turner so I could go back and say something, anything to get away from there again, but then Vernon opened the door and I didn't have a chance to ask for help until he was dead."

Severus nodded and left the infirmary, mentioning classes that needed to resume. There was silence in the room for a few minutes. Madam Pomfrey had watched the conversation between Harry and Severus from the doorway to her office. She had berated herself for not checking for physical signs of abuse such as the internal scarring she had found when Harry was returned to Hogwarts. She had healed Severus when he came in with the virus and knew what had happened to him. The first thing she wished she had done was find out _how_ Harry had contracted Aldena's Heartache before informing the Headmaster of the situation.

When Severus had left Madam Pomfrey retreated into her office to give Harry and Albus their privacy. The silence in the infirmary stretched on. Albus watched Harry and Harry refused to look at the Headmaster. Instead his eyes were off to one side, but they weren't darting about in nervousness. Finally, after nearly twenty minutes of silence and when Harry's eyelids drooped even more, Albus stood and left the infirmary. Harry turned over after the door had closed and fell into an exhausted sleep.

Hours later Harry woke to the feeling of being watched. He slowly opened his eyes and saw two figures in front of him. The man sat on the chair at the side of the bed and the woman was sitting crossways on his knees with the man's arms about her waist. When the two saw that his eyes were open the woman stood from the man's lap and moved to sit on the edge of Harry's bed. She reached up with one hand and lightly brushed it across his forehead.

"Oh, Harry. Are you going to be okay?" she asked in a frightened whisper.

Harry closed his eyes and sighed before he shook his head slowly. "No, Kylie." He swallowed, then, looked up at her, "I'm dying. There's nothing they can do to help me now."

"Does this have anything to do with your relatives? Did they do something to you?" the man spoke for the first time.

Harry nodded at the friend that risked nearly everything to visit him again. "My uncle got the Muggle form of Aldena's Heartache years ago and… passed it to me. I first learned of it this past summer. I didn't know there was anything that could be done for it and I couldn't tell anyone how I got it. I was too ashamed and I don't want anyone's pity."

"Oh, Harry," Kylie murmured and leaned over, hugging him carefully.

"Where will they send you now? I highly doubt they are going to allow you access to the infirmary for a lengthy stay, no matter how much they need you."

"Snape wants me to go to his home. He's had the virus for over half his life. He promised I'd be well cared for and away from prying eyes."

"But he's one of the Dark Lord's men."

"No, he's one of Dumbledore's. He spies on Voldemort," Harry corrected, knowing the man's true feelings on the matter and absently patted Kylie's back as she pulled away from the hug.

"So when are they sending you away again? And why do none of your friends know of this?" she asked, one hand holding one of Harry's.

"I don't know when I'm leaving Hogwarts for likely the last time. I guess when classes are finished as Snape won't need to be here anymore for the students. My friends don't know because I couldn't tell them. They wouldn't know what to do or how to act and seeing how the Professors reacted when Madam Pomfrey told them what was wrong, I don't think I want to know what their reactions would be."

Kylie nodded in understanding and gave his hand a squeeze. While she was upset and frightened by what Harry had told her, there was no pity in her eyes. Not only did Harry not want to be pitied, but she couldn't find it in herself to pity him. He had proven countless times before that just because he was in a bad situation, he wasn't finished yet. Harry would take care of everything he needed to do before he moved on, of that she was sure.

Her companion was also not one to show pity to Harry. He was upset as well by what he had heard because he truly counted the Gryffindor as a friend, one of very few, but he pitied no one. He had seen too much in the last year and if he could find no pity for anyone else, he would makes sure he could find no pity for his friend. Instead, he eyes had turned calculating as he thought.

"You're staying with Snape then, no questions asked?" He continued when Harry nodded, "We'll find a way to visit you this summer, even if we have to reveal ourselves to Snape. We will not let you go through this alone, Harry. You mean too much to the both of us."

Harry could only nod, knowing already that nothing he could say would change his friend's mind. And he was grateful to know there would be a friend that would never leave his side, no matter what happened to him. There were no more words spoken that night and Harry fell asleep to their company, one hand still held by Kylie.

That last week of school went by slowly for Harry, though he wasn't aware of most of the time's passage. He slept for most of that week with his conscious moments filled with Madam Pomfrey's potions to stop his health from worsening for the moment or Professor Snape's presence with Professor McGonagall trying to help him be more comfortable, with what Harry wasn't sure. His nights were spent in sleep or the nightly quiet company of the only two friends that knew what was happening. And from theirs and the Professors' words of the happenings, few wanted to know what was happening, even some of those he had considered friends when he was still in classes.

The evening that Harry was moved to Snape's home was a somber affair. Very few words were spoken by the adults and Harry was the only one to see the shimmer of air of an invisibility cloak as it was pulled back enough for two hands to wave a farewell. Dumbledore was not present that night and Harry had not directly spoken to him since he was returned to Hogwarts. Then, he was in Snape's home and for several weeks the rest of the world and the people there were like a distant memory.

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